


Haunted Skins

by Pkay11



Category: Mysterious Skin (2005)
Genre: M/M, Post-Canon
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-05
Updated: 2020-08-05
Packaged: 2021-03-06 03:07:16
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 1
Words: 464
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25736263
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Pkay11/pseuds/Pkay11
Summary: A story on the lives of the Mysterious Skin characters, taking place some twenty five years after the ending of the novel/movie.
Relationships: Neil McCormick/Original Male Character
Kudos: 3





	Haunted Skins

The past never truly leaves anyone. Well, perhaps if they develop certain psychological conditions.

It certainly hadn't left Neil McCormick. But he often found himself amazed, particularly as someone who grew up in conservative Kansas, at just how rapidly both his own life and the world around him changed. 

Back when he was in school, the United States was going through the AIDS crisis. 'Faggots' were seen as social outcasts. He fulfilled his sexual desires in the most discreet ways possible, waiting for older guys in certain locations. He had Eric Preston as a friend, perhaps the only other openly gay man in the entire state. Or so it felt. 

Now, in the next century, a belief in equality for gay people was mainstream in all but the most staunch of religious quarters. Gay-themed movies were regular, openly gay politicians were becoming more and more common. The really big moment was the Supreme Court's decision to effectively legalise marriage equality. That would have been unthinkable as anything other than a fantasy novel when he and Wendy were causing mischief as kids. 

His own life? Well, he was now engaged. To an older guy, obviously. A fairly wealthy Los Angeles businessman. He had met him through the 'usual route'. A rather run-down LA bar some five years ago. Neil was now in his mid-40s but could still pass for his late 20s. And yet, his youthful appearance still came with a roughness. Probably all those substances. Still, their house was anything but rough. Better than that dump of a place he and his mom lived in all those years ago.

He still visited home occasionally, the place he had called a 'buttcrack of a town'. Hutchinson remained home to his mom. Neither she nor the town has changed much.

The other people of his youth? Well, Eric was now living in New York, not far from Wendy. He was now involved in the fashion industry and eternally single. Wendy was happily married with three children, the usual boring crap, but good for her. 

He thought of another figure from his youth. Brian. Brian Lackey. Not someone who had never been his friend, but they had shared something. Something neither of them would ever forget. Something that would haunt them forever. He's a qualified therapist, or so the last Neil heard. Eric kept in contact with him, as they had something of a bond. That was apparent in the run-up to Neil and Brian's meeting, that only time since childhood that they met, that memorable Christmas conversation that they had. The day after he had been raped. 

Steve, Neil's fiance, planted a sudden kiss on Neil's head. "What are we doing for Christmas, sweetie?" he asked. Neil wryly smiled. Christmas is a happier experience these days.


End file.
